Swiss publications

Swiss publications make up most of the Helvetica collection and include everything published by Swiss publishing houses without any language or subject restrictions. Swiss publications are not only works by Swiss authors; the term also applies to works by foreign authors published in their native language or translations of their works published in Switzerland. Self-published publications, publications by governmental and non-governmental organisations whose headquarters are in Switzerland, art museum and art gallery catalogues are also included in this category. The annual growth of the Swiss book production is of about 15,000 titles.

While there is no federal law on legal deposit in Switzerland, the SNL does nonetheless benefit from an agreement with the two national publishers associations; Schweizerischer Buchändler– und Verleger–Verband (SBVV) and l’Association Suisse des Diffuseurs, Editeurs et Libraires (ASDEL), formerly SLESR, to build its collections. According to this agreement, publishers deposit at the NL a copy of each new published document and the NL lists these in «The Swiss Book», the national bibliography and in Helveticat, the online catalogue. The NL ensures the conservation of these publications and establishes annual statistics on Swiss literary output.